The present invention relates to syringes, and more particularly, the present invention relates to medical/dental syringes capable of being sterilized readily.
Syringes for use by medical and dental personnel to flow water or air into a body cavity, such as the oral cavity, have been known for quite some time. A typical syringe includes a handle having a proximal end with a nozzle and one or more finger actuated valves for controlling flow through the nozzle. The handle has a distal end which is connected to at least one, and preferably two or more flexible hoses each of which is connected to a source of fluid under pressure. For instance, one hose may be connected to air under a line pressure of 80 psig, and the other hose may be connected to water under a pressure of 45 psig. The flow control valves, when actuated, cause either water or air, or a mixture of water and air to be discharged from the nozzle into the body cavity. An example of a desirable syringe having the aforementioned structural and functional features is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,149,315.
In the aforementioned patent, and in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,029,734; 3,254,646; and 4,026,025 the nozzles are detachably secured to the proximal ends of the handles which enable the nozzles to be sterilized periodically. In each of these patented syringes, however, the distal ends of the handles are secured to end portions of the flexible hoses in essentially a permanent manner. As a result, although the nozzles can be removed for sterilization, the handles, being connected to the hoses, are not readily capable of being sterilized by effective sterilization techniques, such as by placement in an autoclave. Thus, while the aforementioned syringes having removable nozzles provide some measure of sterilizability, it would be more desirable for the entire syringe to be capable of being sterilized after each use in order to provide as much protection as possible against the transmission of disease.